The First Day of the Rest of Your Life; Lavender

There are things that go very differently in my head. The first day of my Summer break… In my head I rouse from a peaceful slumber as a stray ray of sunlight gently taps my shoulder.  Hovering Blue Jays hold up an impractical, sheer house coat as I saunter out of the bedroom and into the kitchen where deep, dark black coffee in a delicate piece of China meets my lips in slow motion. My first morning of freedom from the 2016-2017 school year.  In reality, I stumble out clumsily with an asymmetrical tower of bed head at the same time I need to in order to catch my usual morning train. There may have been some snorts and groans. Then, similar noises from the coffee maker. But within both the fantasy and the reality are these beautiful Forever Susan Asiatic Lilies that are blooming in the backyard, which I check in on during during my morning garden inventory. They glow neon-like in front of their flat green leaves. 

And just in case you wondered, the Hydrangea, which have been changing color like a bruise, have now settled on pink.

Onward in my day 1, Lavender By the Bay, a lavender farm on the North Fork in East Marion. I’m rarely on the North Shore of Long Island. But this is fields of lavender…

Up close, the lavender looked like powdery purple Necco candy with just the tiniest little orange sugar speck in the center.  I can see why all the bees were a-buzzing.  

Persistence paid off in my hope to capture the bees feasting. I’d like to say that these shots were more than just luck.

A shot like this is pretty darn satisfying.

Rather than go on about how beautiful these fields are, just look. This is ombre-style lavender blends. 

I feel like I have to stop saying “beautiful.” I need a new word. One that more accurately conveys what it feels like, the satisfaction of taking something in with your eyes… and, in this case, your nose. It’s an ingestion or sorts. And I am hungry a lot. Thankfully I can eat to my heart’s content. It’s my summer after all.